Bobbin



Patented Anais, 1941 UNlrl-:D STATE s waff: li'rf` OFFICE.

. BQBBIN. o .mim L Jackson, wen Asheville-N. c;, signor to AmericanEnka. Corporation, Enka, "N, C., a corporation of Delaware. l

Application August 12, 1940, Serial No. 352,333

ciaims. (ci. 242-111) This invention relates fto the manufacture ofrayon according to the bobbin spinning process and more particularly isconcerned with a process and apparatus for preparing packages of rayonyarn which will respond uniformly to aftertreatment.

In the manufacture of rayon by the employl ment of the bobbin spinningprocess, it is now the practice to collect on a perforated Nbobbin'freshly spun yarn as it issues from a spinningv bath, thiscllectionbeingcontinued until a package of suitable 'size has been wound. 'Uponcompletion of the winding of such 'a package, the

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and the replacement thereof on the machine yin- Such handling istherefore likely to so damage yarn body, while on theI spinningbobbin,is sub- Ilected to certain after-treatments such as lwashing,desulphurizing, bleaching and drying. After drying, the yarn issubjected to twisting and incident to that .operation is rewound in aform suitable for use inthe manufacturing process for which the finishedthread is intended. While the process outlined above is rather exthepackage as to offset the very advantages soughtu by divorcing the yarnbody from the bobbin before effecting after-treatment.

Another type of collapsible spool now known is shown and described inGerman Patent 583,273. This bobbin overcomes some of the disadvantages.of the spool disclosed in the British patent inso tensively employedand has met with considerlable commercial success, it has been notedthat the resultant yarn isnot entirely perfect due to the fact that, indrying the yarn packages, `those convolutlons of thread-,nearest therigid bobbin are-unable lto contract to the same extent as the desirablenon-uniformity. in the final product.

To overcome the disadvantages incident to non-uniformshrinkage resultingfrom drying the yarn' while it is still-interiorly supported by 'thespinning bobbinfit has been proposedv tov wind the 'freshly spun yarn ona.bobbin which may be reducedin diameter so .thatl the package as .awhole can be readily removed'therefrom and dried, vinunsupported'condition, by ymeans now `used in conjunction with yarn.produced according to the centrifugal bucket spinning method. In otherwords, itw'as deemed desirable to dry rayon'yarn without an interiorsupport and yet to spin the yarn according to the bobbin method.

- far as avoiding'uniform contraction throughout its lengthis concerned.On the'other hand, the

`spool shown in' the German patentis so constructed and arranged thatthe means for causing the contraction thereof will engage and interferewith the interior convolutions of thread f of the package as the packageis being doifed therefrom so that handling is-again necessary.

Furthermore, the bobbin of the German patent outer layers of yarn, thisfailure resulting in unbobbin fr'omthe machine with incident loss of Theemployment of collapsible bobbins to accomplish this end has come intowide experi,-

mentaluse. However, because of disadvantages in the methodsand apparatusnowknowncommerclal use of collapsible bobbins hasbeen quite limited. ,v

One collapsible bobbin which is now known to the'art is described inBritish Patentv359,435. The use of this bobbin) however, is not commerciallyv feasible for the reason that the'domng of the'bobbin fromthemachine, the subsequentl collapsingthereof, the removal of the `packagetherefrom' by hand, the re-expansion of the spool is operated through a'peripheraldrive so that both hands of the operator are employed inremoving the same from the 'machine and removal from the machineA doesnot automatically result in the releasel of interior tension. On theother hand, themeans forexpanding the spool must be removed fromengagement with the same as a separate Vstep additional to the removalof the time coupled with the possibility that shrinkage 'may occurbefore interior ltension is released.

Av further disadvantage in operation resulting from the employment ofthe lcollapsible bobbin shwn and. described inthe German patentaforesaid results from the fact that vthe longitudlnally `extending-`radially retractible thread supporting slats-are not guidedfinretraction and therefore must be realigned before .the bobbin can bere-expanded and again inserted on the spinning machine.

It is an object of this invention to overcome all of the foregoingdisadvantages and to permit the production of rayon by thebobbinspinning process which rayon may be subjected vto aftertreatment in theabsence of interior support while at the same time the package producedwill bev substantially unimpaired by l the removal of the interiorsupport therefrom.

' semicircular notch dening edge of the By employment lof this inventionit is con-l templated that the removal of the spinning bobbin from thespinning machine will automatically effect the release of interiortension on the wound package.

An additional object of the present invention is the provision of acontractible spool constructed of acid and alkali-resistent materialssuch as lacquered aluminum and having a minimum of moving parts, thediameter of which being variable to facilitate removal of the threadedpackage.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a contractiblebobbin from which a thread package may be removed for. subsequenttreatment without any manual handling of the package whatsoever andwitha minimum effort on the part of the operator. A

Other objects and advantages-of this inven-- tion will be apparent froma consideration of the4 a resilient ring I6. seated in groove withbobbin spindle I I of a conventional spinning machine not shown. Bobbinholder 9 consists of a portion I2 of relatively large diameter andarportion I3 of lesserdiameter. Portion I3 is provided with two annulargrooves I4 and I5 and I4, but adapted to seat in either of the groovesand to move axially therebetween.

When the apparatus described is used in a winding operation, a spoolpuller of conventional construction is inserted into core I from the endthereof having head 3 thereon. The -core I is then urged axially overportion I3 of holder 5 until the shoulder I1 of portion I2 is engaged.(See Figure 4.) This movement of core I causes ring I3 to roll fromgroove I4, in which it is located prior to the attachment of core I, togroove I5 which is the driving position following detailed descriptionof a preferred form thereof in conjunction with the annexeddrawingwherein:

Figure l is a view in side elevation of a lcollapsible wound packagesupport constructed -according to thisinvention;

Figure 2 is an end view of the package support showing the manner ofmounting the yarn contacting elements;

Figure 3 is a view in side elevationof a bobbin holder adapted to coactwith the package support shown in Figure l; and g Figure 4 is a sideview, partially in section, of the bobbin holder and package support incooperative relationship.

Referring particularly to Figures 1 and`2 of the drawing it will be seenthat the package supporting bobbin includes a hollow cylindrical core Iprovided with spaced axially extending slots 2 about its periphery, Anannular head 3 is attached to one end of the core, this head beingprovided with radially extending slots I for the reception ofthe ends ofslats 5. Slats 5 are arranged about the periphery of core I and extendfrom the point of attachment to head 3 to a point beyond the other endof the core. It will be noted that each slat is provided with a 6 whichwill overlie the lower slot 4 in which it is mounted. By thisarrangement each slat is mounted for movement about a point of pivot sothat the slats are subject to movement in radial paths toward and awayfrom core I. Each of the slats 5 is generally flat while the surfacenearest core I tapers somewhat to a point adjacent the endof the coreand thereafter again broadens. Each slat is provided with a projection'I which is adapted for free radial movement into its respective slot 2,the slot and projection combination serving to guide the movement of theslats and thus prevent any substantial lateral displacement thereof. Thesurface'of each slat opposite the tapering surface is straight surfaceon which the yarn is wound. In order to reduce the effective diameter ofthe a resilient ring 5, of rubber or the like, 1s passed arounddepressed portions in all of the slats 5 at a point closely adjacenthead 3. .This ring urges the slats radially inwardly to the positionshown in Figure 1, and keeps the notch of each slat in engagement withthe respective defining edge of slot 4 at all times.

Thev package supporting device just described which is attached bystraight and it is the set screw III for rotation shown in' Figure 4. Bymounting ring I6.in this manner it will be seen that insertion of core Iover portion I3 is facilitated by the movement of the ring, while thefinal position of the ring makes av good frictional driving connectionbetween bobbin holder 9 and core I. Furthermore, the `force ofcompressed ring I6 on the sloping wall of groove I5 forces and holds thecore I against shoulder I1 of portion I2.

While core I is passing over portion I3 of bobbin holder 9, the freeends of slats 5 are similarly urged over portion I2 thereof. Portion I2thus acts as a cam to spread the slats radially out- Wardly against theaction of resilient ring B to a position` where the yarn contactingsurface is parallel to the axis of core I as shown in Figure 4.

When the package holder and bobbin holder are thus connected, the spoolpuller is removed from core I and spindle II is caused to rotate therebydriving bobbin holder 3, core I and the slats 5 attached thereto. Yarnissuing from a spinning bath is then wound on the slats 5 until apackage of suitable size has been made. Then a spool puller is againinserted in the end of core I having head 3 thereon and the packagesupport is withdrawn axially from the bobbin holder. This action againmoves ring I5. this time back to the position shown in Figure`3, whilethe removal of the support of portion I2 of bobbin holder 9 from betweenthe free ends of slats 5 causes them to contract under the action ofring 8 to the position of Figure 1. The operator then merely holds thepackage support with the free ends of slats 5 pointing downwardly andthe package will fall by gravity into a collection container or support.It should be noted that the collapse of the package support is entirelyautomatic and is a necessary incident to the removal of the core I fromportion I3 of bobbin holder 9. Furthermore, becauseof the fact thatprojections 1, cooperating with slots 2, act to guide the slats 5 intheir radial movement, it is never necessary to position by hand thevarious slats in order to permit the package holder to inward radialmovement of slats 5 is limited by core I and in this connection itshould be noted that their radial movement inwardly is neverbobbin bereplaced over bobbin holder 9. The

partmgfrorn the spirit of the invention, and it is desired that thescope thereof be limited only i by the spirit of the appended claims.

" means for pivotally supporting each of ysaliti slats at the end ofsaid core remote from thev portionl attached to the bobbin holder, thefree ends of said slats extending beyond the end of the core kandoverlying the portionof said holderiof large diameter and held inradially extended position thereby, and means for urging said slatsradially inwardly, whereby when the core is detached from the bobbinholder the slats will move radially inwardly` to form a conical threadsupporting surface and'relieve tension on the interior ally inwardly torelieve tension on the interior ofthe package, at the same timepermitting doillng thereof without disturbance of any of theconvolutions of yarn.

3. A collapsible bobbin for winding strand material comprising, a`cylindrical bobbin core, radially retractible longitudinally taperedslats arranged about the outer periphery of said core, means forpivotally supporting each of said lslats at one end of said core, thefree ends oi.' saidy slats extending beyond the end of said core. a

bobbin holder" cooperating with .the free ends of said slats to urge thesame radially outwardly about said points of pivot and with said core tosupport the same for rotation, said core limiting the extent ofretraction of said slats, and means .adjacent said points of pivot forurging said slats radially inwardly, whereby when the core is detachedfrom the bobbin holder the slats will move radially inwardly to relievetension on the interior of the package, at the same time permittingdoillng thereof without disturbance oi' of the package,'at the same timepermitting A doillngthereof without disturbance of any of the convolutios ot yarn.

2. In ap aratus for winding freshly formed rayon yarn, a winding spindleadapted to be driven, a bobbin holder mounted on said spindle forrotation therewith, `said bobbin holder including a portion of largediameter and a portion of -small diameter. a bobbin core quickdetachablyconnected to said portion of smalldiameter, radially retractible axiallyextending slats arranged about the outer periphery of said core, saidslats constituting a support for a wound package, means-"attached tosaid core for pivotallyfsupporting each of said slats at the end of saidcore remote from the portion attached to the bobbin holder, the freeends of said 'slats' y extending beyond the end ofthe core and overlyingthe portion of said holder having a large diameter and held in radiallyextended position thereby, and resilient means adjacent the point ofpivot of said slats for urging the-same radially inwardly, whereby whenthe core is detached fromthe bobbin holder theslats move radi any of theconvolutions of yarn.

4. In apparatus for winding freshly'formed rayon yarn, 4a windingspindle adapted to be` driven, a bobbin holder mounted on said spindlefor rotation therewith, said bobbin holderv including a portion of largediameter and a portion of small diameter, a bobbin core quickdetachablyconnected to said portion of. small diameter. radially retractibleaxially extending slats arranged about the outer periphery of said core,said Vslats constituting a support for a wound package, means forpivotally supporting each of said slats'only at the end oi' said coreremote from the portion' attached to the bobbin holder, the ifreev endsof said slats extending beyond the 'end of the core andoverlying theportion of said holder having a large diameter and held inradiallyextended position thereby, means for guiding said slats in their path ofradial movement, -andmeans for urging said mex'nbers radially inwardly,whereby when the-core is detached from the bobbin holder the slats willmove radially inwardly.v torelieve tension on the interior of thepackage, vat the same time permitting doillng thereof withoutdisturbance of any of the convolutions of yarn.

AARTHUR L JACKSON.

